Posted by Joe (Joe...) on October 31, 2000 at 01:31:16:
In Reply to: later type trait changes formed in later adulthood posted by margaret on October 28, 2000 at 22:45:42:
I have definately changed as I aged. Maybe not as extreme as you have said, but I have change, I am much less intoverted than I was as a young person. I am not sure if this has to do with aging, or if it has to do with the fact that I have found a life partner, and so am no longer as anxious about the first impressions that I make.
> Does anyone believe that the environment and growing 'older' in adulthood life can have an impact in how your personality 'changes' to adapt to the environment?
> When I was young - I was so stupid and naive - it was not even funny.
> As a matter of fact - it severely came back to letreally terrorize me to death in later adult life when I unexpectedly suddenly got thrown into of horrifying period of 'facing' hard core reality life with absolutely *zero* 'training' in how the world to survive it.
> I gre up only learning the 'flight' reaction - never learned the 'fight' reaction until -bout, this halfpast decade or so.
> And after having to have been *forced* to 'learn' taht (*fast*, too) - I naturally had to force myself to be able to become more what Oldham calls "vigilant" - though - *no doubt*, in my young dult and adolescence and chiildhood - I was anyting but!
> So, nowadays when people 'see' the "vigilance" trait I learned in late adultlife - they are not seeing the 'real' me as I always used to be when younger - but only an extremely harsh, quick-speed-schooled-learned late adulthood traits learned from hard-core harsh environment I got sucked into somehow -
> - not the "real" me -
> - but once "learned" - still have the memories from the learning of it - and therefore still "use" what I have not that too long ago had no choice but to learn what to do - see what I mean?
> I would also say that yes, late adulthood environmental changes can have very vivd impact on personality "adaptation" changes - but as I get older and my life settles dwon more and becomes more in control more - I will much better be albe to "integrate" these 2 incredibly drastic changes of 'personality' 'changes' of mine that are very much at extreme odds with each other - one is trusting and moving 'towards' - the other - reality - hard-core- and move against ( or away as 2nd).
> Right now it just swings violently and rapidly from 'trust' to 'not trust' and it's probably just best to continue keeping my distance - always was safer?/better? that way anyway.
> Any others notice extreme environmental personality changes in later adulthood life?